“Why are we making this a WWE sport” - Aljamain Sterling in disbelief over Marlon Vera being considered next in line for Sean O’Malley’s UFC title

Aljamain Sterling recently weighed in on the UFC bantamweight title picture and noted that he is in disbelief over Marlon Vera being considered due to his past history with reigning champion Sean O'Malley.

During his appearance on The MMA Hour, the former bantamweight champion sounded off on Vera possibly earning a title shot over both Merab Dvalishvili and himself. He took a jibe at the UFC's merger with WWE by insinuating that they are adopting methods of their programming towards their title fights.

He said:

"'Chito's [ranked] number-six, dude. yeah, there's a storyline but we signed the WWE, where we merged, why are we making this a WWE sport? It's not the WWE!

Aljamain Sterling also named who 'Sugar' should defend his title against if he is serious about competing in December. He mentioned that 'The Machine' deserves a title shot in December, but would be in favor of a rematch if O'Malley waits until next year, saying:

"If he [Sean O'Malley] does turn around in December, I think he should fight Merab. If he doesn't and he wants to wait until next year, I would love to do a rematch. I think that's the fight that makes the most sense and I think it gets me an opportunity to show the world that...sometimes the best of us have an off night."

It remains to be seen what the UFC has planned for Sean O'Malley's first bantamweight title defense and whether Aljamain Sterling will earn a rematch following his title reign.

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Aljamain Sterling felt relieved after title loss to Sean O'Malley at UFC 292

Aljamain Sterling revealed that he felt a sense of relief following his knockout loss to Sean O'Malley at UFC 292, which ended his bantamweight title reign.

During the aforementioned appearance, 'FunkMaster' spoke about the stress of being a champion in terms of constantly thinking about the next opponent and training camp. He mentioned that he experienced a weight off his shoulders that had an effect on him mentally, saying:

"I don't gotta do training camp, I don't gotta cut weight, I don't watch my diet, I can just live. I could travel, I don't gotta think about the next guy. I literally don't even know who my next opponent could possibly be and I don't have to think about any of that or worry about it any time soon and that's a relief, man."